Tobacco-specific nitrosamines (TSNAs) are nitrosation products of secondary and tertiary alkaloid amines in tobacco. TSNAs are the result of a chemical reaction between tobacco alkaloids, such as nicotine and nornicotine, and unstable NOx radicals. It is generally understood that microbes on or in the tobacco plant before, during, or after curing are primarily responsible for the formation of nitrite, the predominant NOx precursor in the formation of TSNAs (Bush et al. Recent Advances in Tobacco Science. 27:23-46 (2001)).
A number of bacterial strains are described herein that degrade a number of different nitrite and/or TSNA species.